I need to say a few things before I dive into this. Firstly, I am not going to remember every single spice and reduction with which my meal was served, and I can’t reference the menu like SOME PEOPLE because the entree I ate has been removed. Secondly, I feel the company and environment are just as important as the food in a restaurant. Thirdly, it takes a lot of balls to take a free dinner at a decent restaurant and not tip the server. Finally, I’m not good at this. Not at all. Now, moving on.

On March 26th, Peoria-area bloggers were invited to a dinner at Two25, the restaurant now occupying the ground floor of the Mark Twain hotel. Since everything about the food has already been covered by the lovely and talented PH, I don’t find it necessary to go over every detail of the meal. I will say this: A few bites of the salad tasted dirty, like the lettuce had not been cleaned properly. The escargot had a bit too much garlic. The veal was slightly chewy close to the bone, and the bone was slightly splintered at the tip. I don’t expect to pay that kind of money for a piece of veal and have to spit out pieces of bone.

Other than these small gripes, the meal was excellent. The beer list was absolutely outstanding, which is not something I expected to see. The service was the best I’ve ever received in a large group. The waiter, Sam, was extremely attentive without being intrusive. The decorating was tasteful and simple without any hint of pretentiousness.

My complaint about the menu is similar to PH’s. They’re trying too hard to do too many things at once. “Jack of all trades, master of none” is a phrase that immediately came to mind. The menu should be shorter and more focused. Also, they need to work on the desserts. A restaurant in the Heights where I recently dined had similar menu prices with a MUCH better dessert menu.

I suspect Two25 can do well if they pare down the menu a bit, develop some better desserts, and bring the prices in line with the foods they’re serving.